Medical retrieval devices are often utilized for removing organic material (e.g., blood clots, tissue, and biological concretions such as urinary, biliary, and pancreatic stones) and inorganic material (e.g., components of a medical device or other foreign matter), which may obstruct or otherwise be present within a patient's body cavities. For example, concretions can develop in certain parts of the body, such as in the kidneys, pancreas, ureter, and gallbladder. Minimally invasive medical procedures are used to remove these concretions through natural orifices, or through an incision, such as during a percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNCL) procedure. Further, lithotripsy and ureteroscopy, for example, are used to treat urinary calculi (e.g., kidney stones) in the ureter of a patient.
Further, some medical device baskets are formed from metals contained within thin polymer tubes. During operation of the baskets, the metals slide into and out of the polymer tubes, and the repeated movements stresses and degrades the polymer tubes, resulting in decreased performance or failure.
Thus, there remains a need for improved medical retrieval devices having improved durability.